Electric engine ingenuity breathing new life into sector weighed down by big batteries

Global aviation is on a mission to achieve zero emissions by 2050, and there is no shortage of investment in clean flight technologies. 

In 2022, the electric aircraft market industry was worth $14.8 billion – a value projected to grow at a CAGR of 15.4 percent over the remainder of the decade, trebling to 40.3 billion by 2030.

Asia Pacific and Europe are both notable growth areas, where market leaders China and Germany are being swiftly caught up by fast-accelerating India and the UK.

But despite all the interest, the progress of the innovation has been slow – or at least until 2023.

Two 2023 breakthroughs in North America suggest aircraft powered by hybrid electric engines could be capable of crossing oceans sooner than many thought.

They represent a major step forward for electric aviation – a sector weighed down in recent years by the heaviness of the batteries that power most aircraft with electric engines.

Batteries are powering the world's cars, trains, bicycles and scooters, so why not aircraft, the innovators have long reasoned – even if the technology has not been invented yet.  

After all, advances by battery-powered electric aircraft have been achieved quicker than those seen by other technologies, and that’s got to count for something, surely? 

But progress in recent years has been ultra slow.

Certainly, there was noticeable enthusiasm in 2022 when an all-electric passenger aircraft took to the skies for the first time: a flight coordinated by Israeli company Eviation Aircraft in the US state of Washington.

But the numbers indicated the size of the challenge facing electric aircraft: just eight minutes long, at a minimal altitude, the flight carried nine passengers. 

There’s no getting away from the reality that long-distance electric aircraft will require batteries considerably smaller, lighter and more powerful than the behemoths currently used by e-planes – and that is a problem the industry doesn’t look like solving anytime soon.

Aircraft like ‘Alice’, the Eviation Aircraft prototype, might be able to ferry passengers between regional hubs in the future, but only at a range of 400 km at just under 500 km/h – half the speed of conventional aircraft.

And the projections of other electric aircraft manufacturers aren’t exactly awe-inspiring. By 2027, Maeve Aerospace hopes to launch its new eight-engine aircraft, the Maeve 01. Again the range will be less than 500 km and the capacity is 50 passengers – at a squeeze.

The focus of the sector has accordingly switched from batteries to engines – and the results have been impressive, to say the least. 

In 2023, Canadian company Duxion Motors carried out a successful test of its eJet Motor, the world’s first rim-driven jet propulsion motor​​. 

Not only is it much lighter than other engines, but it is more reliable and capable of producing a thrust/power ratio on a par with the propulsion of a 50-seater regional jet.

Inspired by Wright Electric's 2 MW engine, which uses high-voltage and advanced thermal strategies to enable 2,700 horsepower, Duxion’s engine uses permanent magnet technology to deliver power-to-weight ratios within a design that is both compact and flexible.

Duxion recently signed a deal to supply Dymond Aerospace's forthcoming fleet of 100 cargo planes with 200 eJet motors.

Subject to testing in June 2024, interest is also expected to be high in a new 1 MW motor created by MIT engineers in 2023, which is capable of producing significantly more power than the motors onboard small electric planes like the Eviation Aircraft prototype Alice.

It’s encouraging to note the MIT motor and power electronics take up minimal space and weight: the equivalent of two suitcases and two smallish passengers. In comparison, batteries on new generation electric aircraft can account for 65 percent of the weight.

Experts believe the MIT creation will be best suited to hybrid propulsion systems – and that is clearly where the focus is switching. 

At a time when passengers are returning to the skies in huge numbers and OEM order books are severely backlogged, the bigger the capacity the better.

Two electric aircraft markets are emerging: battery-powered aircraft supplying mostly domestic services, and hybrid electric engine-powered aircraft offering international travel.

Operators and service providers cannot afford to ignore either development – particularly as both promise to be labour intensive. 

Whether it’s changing batteries after every flight or adhering to increased safety measures made necessary by the high voltage electronics, MRO operatives will need lots of retraining.

The airports and airlines, meanwhile, will need to ensure that electric aircraft spare parts inventories are within easy access to avoid AOG situations.

It’s time to get ready for a future in which clean fuel powers the world’s aircraft: one day the niche will become the mainstream.  

Providers sticking to conventional spare parts will run the risk their customers will shop elsewhere as they will favour suppliers that can cater to all their needs, instead of having to visit multiple suppliers.

Recent breakthroughs have restored the aviation industry's faith that electric aircraft will play a major role in achieving clean air travel, but it won't be with incredibly heavy batteries onboard. Innovators have taken a major step on the way to developing hybrid propulsion systems powerful enough to fly jets over the ocean. The technology might not be ready yet, but the signs are good it will be soon.